Mechanics Bank Trust Department Grows Position in Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Mechanics Bank Trust Department increased its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 0.4% in the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 36,994 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 133 shares during the quarter. Mechanics Bank Trust Department’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $2,928,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Barnes Dennig Private Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 1st quarter worth approximately $27,000. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC boosted its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 141.7% during the 1st quarter. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC now owns 377 shares of the company’s stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 221 shares during the last quarter. MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 1st quarter valued at $36,000. MJT & Associates Financial Advisory Group Inc. purchased a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 1st quarter valued at $48,000. Finally, Fiduciary Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 1st quarter valued at $48,000. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently commented on MRK. Berenberg Bank lowered shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and reduced their price target for the company from $100.00 to $90.00 in a report on Wednesday, September 17th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $97.00 to $90.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 30th. Finally, Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $99.00 to $98.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, July 10th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have assigned a Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Merck & Co., Inc. currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $106.41.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Performance

Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock opened at $81.41 on Monday. Merck & Co., Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $73.31 and a fifty-two week high of $118.16. The firm has a market cap of $203.34 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.54, a P/E/G ratio of 0.84 and a beta of 0.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a current ratio of 1.42 and a quick ratio of 1.17. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $82.79 and a 200 day simple moving average of $82.34.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The company reported $2.13 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.03 by $0.10. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 25.79% and a return on equity of 41.05%. The firm had revenue of $15.81 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $15.92 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. has set its FY 2025 guidance at 8.870-8.970 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 7th. Investors of record on Monday, September 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.81 per share. This represents a $3.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 15th. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 49.92%.

Merck & Co., Inc. Company Profile

Merck & Co, Inc is a health care company, which engages in the provision of health solutions through its prescription medicines, vaccines, biologic therapies, animal health, and consumer care products. It operates through the following segments: Pharmaceutical, Animal Health, and Other. The Pharmaceutical segment includes human health pharmaceutical and vaccine products.